Design Research Lead – Product Growth

Join the team redefining how the world experiences design. Hey, g’day, mabuhay, kia ora,你好, hallo, vítejte!Thanks for stopping by. We know job hunting can be a little time consuming and you’re probably keen to find out what’s on offer, so we’ll get straight to the point.  Where and how you can work Our flagship campus is in Sydney. We also have a campus in Melbourne and co-working spaces in Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide. But you have choice in where and how you work. That means if you want to do your thing in the office (if you’re near one), at home or a bit of both, it’s up to you.  What you’d be doing in this role About the UX Research team  At Canva, our users are at the heart of everything we do. Our UX Research team plays a vital role in the vision and success of our company. One of the best things about Canva is how much everyone across the business cares about users and improving their experience – you’ll never have to sell anyone on the value of user research.Our team conducts qualitative and quantitative research to inform design decisions, product strategies, and identify opportunities. We believe that research findings are most powerful when they’re out of reports, and actively being applied and used by product teams. Researchers partner with PMs, designers, engineers, and marketers to help them better understand Canva’s multi-faceted user base, solve complex challenges, and improve the product experience for millions of users worldwide. Our research team is diverse, collaborative, and supportive. We each bring unique strengths and interests to the group and encourage each other to grow in our craft every day.  About the Supergroup The extraordinary growth Canva has experienced to date has been primarily bottom-up and led from within our product, and the Product Growth ‘supergroup’ is Canva’s centre of excellence for product-led growth.We’re a cross-functional, global org of 185+ passionate people made up of four groups: User Growth; Teams Growth, Pro Growth, and Revenue Platform. Our work spans from building exciting new growth-focused products & experiences, developing unique and creative growth loops and GTM tactics, launching 100s of experiments each quarter, through to building the global payments & subscriptions infrastructure that allows our 100M+ monthly users worldwide to access our premium products.Our goals play a central role in Canva’s overall company mission and business success. We’re responsible for a number of critical company metrics, which include signup, onboarding, activation, engagement, frequency of use, retention, collaboration, and monetization – right across our Free and Pro subscription products, globally. About the role We’re searching for an experienced Design Research Lead to lead a team of researchers within the Product Growth Supergroup. Research projects you’ll oversee directly tie to Canva’s company-wide goals, so increasing user understanding and identifying key product opportunities is of critical importance. At Canva, we approach management differently than other companies. We call managers “coaches” because this reflects the type of relationship we’d like you to have with your direct reports (“coachees.”). As a UX Research Coach, you’ll work with several researchers, unlocking their potential to maximize their own performance. We value autonomy, setting crazy big goals, personal growth, and self-reflection. Additionally, our managers are “player-coaches.” This means that you won’t solely be managing researchers. You’ll keep one foot in the craft – this could mean synthesizing findings across previous studies; providing consultative support for designers or PMs conducting research; or even leading your own research projects. 

Your sphere of ownership includes:

Prioritizing what research is happening across the entire Supergroup, including proactively identifying gaps in knowledge. 

Developing a program of research to gather insights about our international userbase, including partnering with external vendors 

Ensuring all research conducted across the Supergroup is high quality; helping elevate research findings into truly design-inspiring and business-impacting insights 

Influencing product and business decisions at the senior leadership level, sharing research insights and opportunities, and acting as the voice of the customer. 

What You’ll Do

Build and manage a high-performing team of 3+ researchers. Support them through 1:1 coaching, including shaping research plans, providing constructive feedback, setting career goals, and formal reviews. 

Develop research roadmaps for the Supergroup, aligned to product and business objectives, and be able to adjust these if/when priorities shift

Act as a trusted, strategic partner to Supergroup Leads (Design, Product, Engineering, Data) through your team delivering research insights that lead to demonstrable business value. Work closely with Leads to apply research findings and implement them in their short-and long-term strategy. 

Define the Product Growth research team’s identity, ways of working, and culture. Create a positive environment of belonging, trust, safety, and inclusion. 

Collaborate closely with Canva’s Head of Research and other leaders in the team, contributing to our overall strategy. Bring your ideas and initiative to level up our collective craft and impact. 

Creatively build a strong research culture within the Product Growth Supergroup, including at the leadership level. For example, showcasing research insights in Supergroup-wide presentations and workshops with cross-functional teams and executive, etc. 

Partner with our ResearchOps Lead to develop a strong network of research vendors we can utilize for international research 

Lead foundational research projects for the Supergroup (which may include leading teams of multiple researchers, vendors, etc.), setting the standard for the high quality of research we strive for. 

Experience you’ll have:

The ideal candidate is a qualitative researcher with 6+ years of experience leading research studies: planning, recruiting, executing, analyzing, and activating. We expect to hear examples of how your research influenced product and design team decision-making

At least 1+ year of experience coaching researchers – you understand how to make an impact through empowering, growing, and motivating others.

Experience as a Design Research Lead, directing and planning research strategy across multiple projects and researchers. 

You have strong skills and confidence in communicating about, and advocating for, user research with senior stakeholders and leadership.

You have a strong grasp of qualitative and quantitative research methodologies. You can flex research plans creatively based on constraints and context, clearly communicating trade-offs to stakeholders. 

You thrive in a fast-paced work environment that requires strong problem-solving skills, autonomy, and driving forward through ambiguity. You can juggle multiple priorities and handle change. 

You have experience closely collaborating with product teams (PM, Design, Engineering, Marketing, Data, and more). You enjoy collaborating with stakeholders throughout projects, and consider bringing them along the journey to be an essential part of the process. 

You have experience helping People Who Do Research designers and PMs) become better researchers. For example, providing feedback on research plans, interview technique, or final reports. 

You have strong communication and facilitation skills. Whether it’s during a workshop, presentation, or even a Slack message – you have an innate ability to rally a team together and inspire change. 

You always keep your ear to the ground for relevant insights happening across the organization, understanding the implications and opportunities, and bringing them back to your team.

Nice to have, but not a requirement:

Experience leading research focusing on international, cultural differences

Experience working with external research vendors 

Fluent in another language 

A degree in Psychology, Human-Computer Interaction, Social Science or a related field

What’s in it for you? Achieving our crazy big goals motivates us to work hard – and we do – but you’ll experience lots of moments of magic, connectivity and fun woven throughout life at Canva, too. We also offer a stack of benefits to set you up for every success in and outside of work.Here’s a taste of what’s on offer:• Equity packages – we want our success to be yours too• Inclusive parental leave policy that supports all parents & carers• An annual Vibe & Thrive allowance to support your wellbeing, social connection, office setup & more• Flexible leave options that empower you to be a force for good, take time to recharge and supports you personally Check out for more info. Other stuff to know We make hiring decisions based on your experience, skills and passion, as well as how you can enhance Canva and our culture. When you apply, please tell us the pronouns you use and any reasonable adjustments you may need during the interview process. Please note that interviews are conducted virtually.